Recipe: Concord grape granita

Total time: About 12 minutes

Servings: 6 to 8

Note: From Campanile chef-owner Mark Peel. He recommends using Beaujolais for its relatively low alcohol content.

2 pounds Concord grapes (about 6 cups stemmed grapes)

2 cups Beaujolais, divided

1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper

5 whole cloves

1/2 cup sugar

1. In a medium saucepan, combine the grapes, 1 cup of the wine, the black pepper, cloves and sugar and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the remaining wine. Strain through a cheesecloth-lined fine-mesh strainer, pressing the grapes with the back of a wooden spoon to extract any juice. Discard grapes.

2. Place the mixture in a wide, shallow glass baking dish and cover loosely with foil. Place the dish in the freezer, and leave it 2 to 3 hours until the granita freezes solid. Before serving, place the frozen granita in the refrigerator to soften slightly. To achieve a slushy texture, scrape the granita with a fork into serving bowls. Serve immediately.

Each serving: 135 calories; 1 gram protein; 25 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram fiber; 0 fat; 0 cholesterol; 4 mg. sodium.